Nature Prose: Writing in Ecological Crisis

Nature Prose explores the popularity and appeal of contemporary writing about nature, arguing that it contains formal effects that encapsulate our current ecological dilemma and offer a fresh resource for critical thinking. It also reveals paradoxical moments that encode the contemporary ecological crisis, marking a turning point in how literary criticism engages with nature writing.

Format: Hardback
Length: 240 pages
Publication date: 13 September 2022
Publisher: Oxford University Press

Nature prose delves into the captivating allure of contemporary writing about nature, exploring the reasons behind its widespread popularity and enduring appeal amidst an ecological crisis. This book intervenes in critical discussions about literature and the environment, shedding light on the enduring fascination with nature writing during such a pivotal time. Through a diverse range of international examples, particularly focusing on late twentieth- and early twenty-first-century writing from Britain and the US, Dominic Head argues that nature writing possesses formal effects that encapsulate our current ecological dilemma and provide a valuable resource for critical thinking.

The environmental crisis has injected a renewed urgency and a fresh sense of curiosity into nature writing, attracting readers seeking solace in the nonhuman world or seeking ways to adapt to the impending ecological catastrophe. However, beneath the apparent alignment between nature writers' aims and readers' desires, there exists a shared mood of radical uncertainty and insecurity. The treatment and construction of nature in contemporary imaginative prose reveal profound paradoxes that underlie its dominant moods, ranging from earnestness to celebration, prophecy to cautionary. It is in these paradoxical moments that the contemporary ecological crisis is formally encoded, manifesting in a progressive development of ecological consciousness since the late 1950s.

Nature prose encompasses fiction and nonfiction, aligning with a defining era of crisis while also being shaped by it. This form of writing emerges in a world grappling with profound challenges, yet it is also grappling with its own crises. The book, organized into chapters on remoteness, exclusivity, abundance, and rarity, represents a significant shift in how literary criticism engages with nature writing. By delving into these themes, it offers valuable insights into the complex relationship between humans and the natural world, highlighting the ethical and philosophical dimensions of our interactions with nature in a time of crisis.

Weight: 522g
Dimension: 242 x 166 x 19 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780192870872